Companies House do not return details of the Members for a company Limited by Guarantee. Fortunately, it is easy to add and maintain these records using Inform Direct.
Note: Before you can add a member, you must first create a membership class. If you have not already done so, please see How do I create a membership class?.
The guide below covers adding members individually. If you have a company with a large number of members it may be quicker to use our bulk upload function. See How do I bulk upload members?
1. From the Membership Classes tab click on the blue 'Add new member' button.
2. Start to add details of the new member including the:
- Membership start date
- Membership class (if there is only one class the system will default to this)
- The amount of guarantee (it defaults to the amount set for the Membership Class)
Click on the green 'Next' button to continue.
3. Next select from the dropdown list whether the new member is:
- An Individual
- A Corporate
-
A Joint member
Click on the green 'Next' button to continue.
4. In the next window, start typing the Forename or Surname of the person you are adding. This will check for records of existing people from your portfolio of companies. See How do I select an Existing Person?
5. Finally add the remaining details.
Note: The email address is optional and will not be sent anywhere should you choose to input something here. The member contact address is the address which will appear on any membership certificates generated.
6. Click on the green 'Next' button and you will have an opportunity to review the information.
7. If you are happy with everything click the green 'Submit' button.
Note: When creating a membership class that already exists at Companies House you may discard the SH11 produced by Inform Direct as it is not necessary to report the creation of this class twice.
8. You can now generate any necessary supporting documentation by selecting the tick box alongside the documents you require. These will automatically save to your Document Library.
9. Next, you have the option to generate a Membership Certificate. If you select 'No' here, you can always create one later. If you wish to generate one now then do select 'Yes' instead.
What do Membership Certificates look like?
When you Return to the class list you will see the details of the new Member.
Note: Post incorporation there is no requirement to report changes in membership to Companies House for a Company Limited by Guarantee. That said, it is still a requirement for the company to maintain an up to date register of members, which should be available for inspection. Inform Direct will update the Register of Members for you.